Sphagnum quinquefarium |
Sphagnum subnitens |
|
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five-rank peat-moss, sphagnum |
lustrous peat-moss, sphagnum |
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Habit | Plants moderate-sized, typically stiff and compact, capitulum usually hemispherical; green, grayish white, pale yellow, purplish red, may have a slight metallic luster when dry. | Plants moderate-sized, relatively robust, smaller in exposed sites, elongated in shaded sites, soft, capitulum ± large; pale green, green, yellowish, yellow-brown, brown, pinkish, purplish; with strong metallic sheen when dry. |
Stem(s) | leaves triangular to triangular-lingulate, 1–1.3 mm, apex acute to slightly obtuse, border broad at base (more than 0.25 width); hyaline cells narrowly rhomboid, mostly 0–1-septate and mostly efibrillose. |
leaves triangular to triangular-lingulate, 1.2–1.7 mm, apex acute to sometimes shortly cuspidate due to involute margins near apex, border narrow at base (less than 0.25 width); hyaline cells mostly efibrillose and aporose, 0–1(–2)-septate. |
Branches | usually strongly 5-ranked. |
long and tapering, unranked. |
Branch leaves | ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 1.1–1.5 mm, concave, straight, apex slightly involute; hyaline cells on convex surface with numerous oval to elliptic pores along commissures grading from small pores near apex to large round pores at base, concave surface with large round pores in proximal portions of leaf. |
1.3–2.7 mm, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 1.3–2.7 mm, concave, straight, apex involute; hyaline cells on convex surface with 2–6 large, narrowly elliptic ringed pores along the commissures, but usually absent from marginal regions of leaf, concave surface aporose or with 1–4 large round pores per cell especially near base. |
Sexual condition | monoicous or dioicous. |
monoicous. |
Spores | 19–27 µm, finely papillose on proximal surface, pusticulate on distal surface; proximal laesura less than 0.4 spore radius. |
22–32 µm, finely to irregularly coarsely-papillose on proximal surface, irregularly coarsely papillose on distal surface; proximal laesura less than 0.5 spore radius. |
Branch | fascicles with mostly 3 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches. |
fascicles with 2 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches. |
Sphagnum quinquefarium |
Sphagnum subnitens |
|
Phenology | Capsules mature mid summer. | Capsules mature early summer. |
Habitat | Weakly minerotrophic and hygrophytic, wet mineral bedrock, damp coniferous humus along coast and in montane regions | Coastal oceanic mires that range from weakly to moderately minerotrophic |
Elevation | low to high elevations | low to moderate elevations |
Distribution |
AK; CT; GA; MA; MD; ME; MN; NC; NH; NY; PA; TN; VA; VT; WV; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; ON; QC; Eurasia |
AK; CA; OR; WA; BC; Eurasia; Pacific Islands (New Zealand) |
Discussion | Sporophytes are common in Sphagnum quinquefarium. This species is usually associated with S. capillifolium, S. girgensohnii, and S. russowii. No other species of sect. Acutifolia has the combination of quinquefarious branch leaves and three spreading branches per fascicle. Sphagnum rubiginosum has three spreading branches but the branch leaves are quite unranked and its lingulate stem leaf is quite distinct from the triangular stem leaf of S. quinquefarium. See also discussion under 86. S. talbotianum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sporophytes are common in Sphagnum subnitens. The ecology of this species is unclear because of past taxonomic confusion with S. subfulvum. However, the two clearly differ in gametophyte and spore morphology (K. I. Flatberg 1985; Cao T. and D. H. Vitt 1986). The metallic sheen and strongly pointed stem leaves will distinguish this species from the somewhat similar S. capillifolium. See also discussion under 83. S. subfulvum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 96. | FNA vol. 27, p. 98. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. acutifolium var. quinquefarium, S. schofieldii | |
Name authority | (Lindberg) Warnstorf: Hedwigia 25: 222. (1886) | Russow & Warnstorf: Verh. Bot. Vereins Prov. Brandenburg 30: 115, plate 3, fig. 9, plate 4, figs. 22, 23. (1888) |
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